A new time in life!

Hi guys!!!! So its been a while since I've blogged.
I thought to myself today, there are so many new things going on in life why not keep blogging until the next baby comes along! ( we've got time before all that happens)
Lets see when I last left you I had just given birth to a perfect, healthy, baby boy! Here we are 5 months later. Can you believe it? 5 months already.
Here's a quick down low of what's gone on since then!
About a week after Hunter came into this world my amazing, wonderful, darling grandfather left this world. My family was devastated. Besides my father and husband, he truly was the greatest man I had ever met. I was blessed to be his grandchild and Hunter will always know who grandpa Bud was.
Also on that same fateful day I was fired from my job and ultimately lost some other relationships in my life.
Moving forward I realized with out those horrible things happening I would not have seen Gods love and grace through this time. He blessed me with a gift and challenged me with some trials only for me to come to the conclusion of the new road I am on!
On February 21st I will be attending Beau Monde college of hair design. It has been a love and passion of mine for many of years and now I finally get to correct a regret I wish I had done so long ago. I will be majoring in hair and facial/make-up. Because I was able to show them some previous work I was granted a scholarship and 2 grants to help pay for school. I'm working on my third grant now!
I'm so excited and thrilled in this new journey and ask that you come see me for your beauty needs! I thought it would be fun to blog about tips and trades that I learn. That way I can help the " beauty challenged" :)
I have also decided to get in the best shape of my life with the help of the insanity work out and weight watchers! After having Hunter I weighed less then before and figured "Hey lets keep this trend going!"  Also with my pacemaker working 100%of the time, to ensure I'm here for the long haul I need to be in prime health! So far I'm 4 pants sizes smaller then before Hunter! 
Amongst all this I also have a few weddings booked this summer! Yup I'm back to my old self! Busy busy busy!
Also on February 21st I have my cardiologist appointment. This appointment will tell exactly how long I have before I go under the knife again. I gotta get that pacemaker battery replaced. From the last check, I predict it will be September sometime maybe a little later. I've never been scared of my condition or worried but having Hunter kind of shakes the nerves a bit. I just want to be here to see my baby grow into a wonderful man!
When the pacemaker is done and school is finishing up its time to hit that baby making magic again! That's right folks I'm going for a second one! Can't let a little bit of kidney pain keep me down!
Isaac and I and my family were hit with some devastating things in these last 5 months. But I look back and learned a lot about people, friendship, life, death, and what really matters. I couldn't be happier or in a better place. God has truly provided and blessed us during this time. I give all the glory to him.
Hunter has also done amazingly well! He's a big boy as most of you know! He sits in the 98% for head size and weight but 79% for height. He is so smart! We do "school" everyday with the My baby can read program and he is definitely showing signs of understanding it. Just yesterday he showed Isaac and I that he knew what we meant when we say arms up and arms down. He also LOVES his rice cereal. He has amazing leg strength thanks to his jumparoo, and loves to roll over ( although hates tummy time) :)

That's about it with us! I also want to take the time to thank our friends and family who have supported us and looked out for us during my pregnancy and after Hunter was born. You have truly shown me what friendship, loyalty,  and love is! I couldn't be more thankful!
Love you all and until next time!

Stay tune for beauty blogs!

Loves
Jenn
(Psalms 73:26)

Here we are 11 hours away!

I still can't seem to wrap my head around what's going to happen in the morning. My doctor called me and left a message just to check in and make sure I remembered not eat or drink past midnight. So sweet!
I was doing great today, then I saw my mom and I cried for about a good hour an a half. My tears were representative of every emotion I could possibly feel. I've never felt this before, it so hard to explain. Of course I'm excited but I think I'm equally nervous and scared of the entire process and being a mommy. Isaac put it best. For so long we have been in love with and object (my belly) and a thought of a baby. Now tomorrow that object and thought becomes a real life living breathing child! Its a feeling so hard to describe if you've never been there. Amongst my tears a long time wonderful beautiful best friend of mine called me, Crystal Navarro. And she experienced the same emotions I'm going through now with her son. That brought me so much comfort to know this was normal. When we hung up my husband got down on one knee as I sat on the couch and said "there is something I want to give you, I've wanted to give it to you for a while. Its something I'm giving you as your Husband and soon to be Hunter's father." He then handed me a little box wraped in gold ( I recognized the Kay jewelers wrapping) I looked at him stunned. When I unwrapped it and opened this blue velvet box, I found a beautiful charm that had a silhouette of a gold mother holding her white gold child with a diamond in the center. I was speechless. I just sobbed more. He told me it is to go on the chain the holds the locket he gave me for mothers day with Hunter's picture in it. Its perfect. At that moment a calm came over me that I haven't felt in days. In the charm I also saw a guardian angel holding me! I felt like it was God telling me all was going to be ok. Don't worry, don't cry, because I have you always and forever. I look at my life and I am amazed. I may not be wealthy, I may struggle from time to time, I may be handed difficult cards but I always lean on my Savior and He has given me a beautiful home, a wonderful job, an amazing godsend of a husband, 2 beautiful dogs, a family and family in law beyond words, friends that help me grow and make me better, and now a miracle baby boy! I am so undeserving its insane! But so appreciative.
Thank you all for following me on this journey! My love and heart for you all can not be placed into words! Now tomorrow we close this chapter and start a new! Hang on for the ride because its just starting!
God bless you all!
Isaac's number if you don't have it is 503-956-4440. Feel free to text him at anytime for an update!
May God bless you all!
Tomorrow we welcome a third musketeer!
Love always
Jenn, Isaac, and Hunter!

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The last appointment! Rules and restrictions for visitor!

Well today was the last appointment before Hunter arrives!
We are scheduled for Tuesday August 23rd at 10 am. Isaac and I will be at the hospital at 8am to get all settled in. It will take 3 hours until anyone is allowed to see us. For the first day Isaac, myself, and my doctors feel its best to only have family visit. There are alot of factors playing into that decision. 1) being that Isaac and I really want to share this first with eachother and our families. 2) I'm not sure how I'll be feeling and if I'll be up for "entertaining" people and trying to learn how to be a new mom. 3) There is a chance our son will go through medication withdrawal and I want us to be able to focus on him if that is the case.
There is also certain unknowns in the days to follow the birth. Because I have had a kidney stent for 4 month it has become crusted. Normally a stent removal is no big deal. Its a quick tug out and done. But due to that crusting we know that I will have to be numbed from the waist down, just like I did when it went in, due to the difficulty and pain of pulling it out. The catch is we can't pull it out until we do a CT scan. Well a CT scan can't happen until after Hunter is born.
Here are our two scenarios : best case: I have the baby, all is great and that night or the next day we do the CT scan. The CT scan shows no stone and while I'm still in the hospital the take me back to the OR numb me up and pull it out! All is said and done.
Worst case scenario: I give birth, all is good, we do the CT scan that night or the next day and find a stone or stones that can not pass on their own. We then leave the stent alone. I go home and heal a bit only to have to go back to the hospital and have a procedure done to remove the stone/stones, remove the stent and place a new stent in for a week and then remove that one and all is good.
So as you can see one is a lot longer more aggravating process. We hope for the first of course.
We really want to show off our son and share him with as many people as possible. Unfortunately due to the uncertainty of our situation we just ask that all visitors check with Isaac or myself before coming over. I would hate for you to make the drive and be turned away because I or Hunter are not in a good place to be seen!
That's about it for the update! Please please please pray or send good thoughts are way about the stent. That is my biggest concern right now. I don't want anything to hinder me from being able to take care of my son as his mother!
I love ya all and be ready to welcome our newest member of the family in 6 days!!!! Yay!

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what does it mean to be a mommy?

I sit here night after night wide awake and I let my mind wonder.
Originally we planned on the 20th for our c section but it will be moved up just a few days to accommodate all my doctors schedules. When the day was originally picked we did not take all schedules into consideration.
So on Thursday we will pick a new day! Isaac and I are going to request the 18th because we were married on the 18th of March! I looked at the calendar and realized that is only a week away on Thursday! I can't help but to feel very emotional at the thought of it.
Its so odd the fear that comes over me at the idea of being a new parent. I have taken care of children my entire life! I began babysitting at the age of 11, it was common for me to have at least 5 families at one time! I did that until I was 19 years old! Not to mention having my baby sister who is 10 yrs younger then me! I learned to change a diaper at the age of 9! I went to collage for kindergarten teaching but ended up only getting a degree in ECE (early childhood education ) I'm CPR certified with a concentration on infant and toddler care, I had a 1 yr old live in my house for 8 months, I've taken care of kids on and off for 8 years, and before going on bed rest I was nannying for over a year with 1 yr old twins and a 5 yr old! I even plan on getting my licence and opening my own daycare as a 5+ year goal! On paper I am so qualified for kids! My love and passion to teach and nurture them is something I have always had and always been extremely confident in. Yet here I am a little over a week away from having my very own child and I'm so terrified! What if I break him, or what if I loose my cool, what if I want a break, what if I screw him up, what if something goes wrong with him, what if I'm just not enough? Its so odd for me to be around other children and feel so confident, but facing my own is terrifying! I want him so bad and love him so much already I don't want to screw up! Is this normal? Should I feel so guilty for being so scared?
I'm also terrified of the birthing process. Granted I'm having a c section but will my recovery hinder me being able to care for my baby? How bad will I hurt? What will my emotions do after the hormone drop? (In case you couldn't tell I'm a closet worry basket case! Always have been!)
*Deep breath* I realize I'm only stressing myself out when I don't need to be but yet I can't shut my mind off. I so badly want him here asap but at the same time the little voice in the back of my head says "its ok if you wait little Hunter " moms out there tell me I'm not nuts! Please tell me this is normal?
Its funny too because I look at Isaac and have no doubt he will be the most perfect father! Just today I watched him interact with a friends 2 yr old son and he knew exactly what to do to distract and entertain this boy so mommy could pick upand get ready to go! Again I cry because seeing that lets me know we can do this, and God blessed us for a reason!
Oh man I'm a mess of emotions!

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20 days and counting!

Here I am off my feet trying to get the swelling down quickly! In a week I gained 10 lbs of fluid. It's crazy how fast that came on! If you push on my foot it leaves an imprint.
At my last appointment we had some scare. Because my swelling came on so fast we did a protein dip of my urine and it came back positive for +1. What that means is my kidney is leaking protein into my urine, which is usually a sign of preeclampsia. Preeclampsia can be extremely dangerous, especially for someone with my condition. The tricky thing about me is my blood pressure is so low naturally the Dr was nervous that I would have preeclampsia and we wouldn't know it due to my hidden BP. So we did blood work. Luckily my blood work came back normal! However the nurse did say "you don't have peeeclampsia yet" YET!?!?! I felt very comforted at that moment (can you sense my sarcasim?)
Now we are going to call my urologist and make sure my kidney is not getting damage due to the stent. I may not have preeclampsia (yet) but I could still be having some kidney issues. The Dr said if I test +3 or more he's taking the baby that day.
With that we set the date! C section is August 20th. Although Dr thinks we wont make it that long :D. He goes on vacation from August 11th to the 17th so I think he's hoping baby will hold out until then! We shall see. Of course if need be I have a team of Dr's who will step in and deliver Hunter.
I left the Dr's office that day and burst into tears! It was the fear that "holy crap I'm having a baby!" had kicked in! His room is done so I feel very ready for him! I'm more scared and nervous now about the entire birthing and stent removal process.
So that's pretty much it! I'm a full 36 weeks pregnant, 22 lb weight gain, oh and baby is 7.7 lbs, increase swelling, increase uncomfortability, and ready to meet my baby any day!

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Dear baby boy, I'll see you soon!

I know its been a while since an update and I do apologize!
I am down to weekly Dr appointments and will switch to bi-weekly next week! We are getting down to it!
Lets see what's new....
Well for starters the best news is at our last ultrasound the Dr said there is no sign of ventricular distress! Meaning my baby will more then likely be born with a healthy heart! Luckily mommy did not pass that on!! We were over joyed to hear that! We were also told that he is measuring about 3 weeks early. Due to my diabetes he's a big baby! He was 5.6 lbs and growing about 2 lbs every month. Luckily he is evenly portioned! Most women with diabetes have big babies who's shoulders and tummys are large but the rest is normal. Not my son he's a roly poly all over! :) due to this new finding we are going to monitor his growth closely. If he continues to grow the way he is by 38 weeks he'll be 9 lbs and that's when we'll take him. The Dr says he is 70% sure we will do a c section. I am fine with that. For me the thought of surgery is far more comforting then the other way! Lol. Surgery I know I can do!
The only problem is we have to be a little more cautious of the heart failure due to c section. Due to the increase in fluid and blood after the procedure I will be very closely monitored for 2-3 hours only allowing my family to visit. After we get out of that questionable zone I'll be moved to the normal maternity ward and able to start seeing visitors. Because of this we ask that anyone who would like to visit the day he is born to just communicate with Isaac and we will give the go ahead when time.
We have been slowly working on his nursery which is coming along so beautifully! I am a little worried I wont be ready but its just me being silly!
We did really great at our first baby shower and are so stinking excited for our next one! Then we'll get the last little necessities and be ready to go!
My sweet wonderful husband has been working so much so we have extra income for when Hunter arrives, I'm just so proud! I'm constantly smitten and amazed by Isaac every second. He has shown me what an amazing man of our home he has grown into! Taking care of me and his unborn son, I'm just so blessed to give him a little boy of his own!
You our friends have been so amazing as well! Thank you for the constant calls, visits, and well wishes! Our family is wonderful as well! My in law's gave us a beautiful stroller car seat combo, my parents have blessed us with baby furniture and the entire crib bedding, my baby sister comes over almost everyother day to say hi or help me with a project, and not to mention the amazing art my mother in law and sister are providing for Hunter. I am so honored to bless these people with a nephew, grandson, son, and future fun child!
I can't express my joy enough. For being a difficult pregnancy I have still really enjoyed this process. Probably more then I should have :) I will be doing this again for sure. Down the road.... lol. One baby at a time!
I love you all, and be ready to meet Hunter Aaron Jones the second week of August! I know I am!

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